If, in a network of this type, a message could be forwarded along all the possible routes, the message would arrive at a given node along several routes at different instants by reason of the unavoidable propagation delays due to the various electric circuits of the network, which would cause a degradation of the transmitted information. It is therefore desirable that the data be transmitted from node to node only through a single route. It is also desirable that such a network may be able to continue to operate when the transmission means (such as the conductors) and/or the nodes which were used for forwarding the messages have deteriorated. Thus, such a network ought to be capable of self-reconfiguration in case of a breakdown.
A network of this type is known in which the dispatching or routing of the messages is controlled by a central computer. It has been established, however, that the known network does not offer a sufficient flexibility for permitting such a reconfiguration, when there is a breakdown, which would be satisfactory in all cases; moreover, the network is subjected to the operational hazards of the central computer.